1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to the art of sizing window coverings, including such window coverings as roller shades, mini blinds, pleated shades and vertical blinds. More particularly, the present invention relates to a compact system for sizing a variety of window coverings, and in its most preferred form, the invention includes a flip-top surface which contains a pleated shade sizing station on one side and a mini blind sizing station on the other. In the preferred embodiment, roller shade and vertical shade sizing devices are included in the system.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Numerous types of window coverings are now being sold in a variety of outlets. Window coverings of the type with which the present invention is concerned include roller shades, pleated shades, mini blinds and vertical blinds, as opposed to draperies and curtains which may be sold in the same outlets but which involve different sizing requirements.
The types of outlets which sell such window coverings include custom specialty shops and department stores, which usually ask the customer for window dimensions and then submit orders to factories or distribution centers where the products are cut to a specific size. Not only must the customer make two visits to these outlets to obtain the product, the custom window coverings are relatively expensive.
Mass merchandisers also distribute window coverings. In many such outlets only stocked sizes are carried, because some windows, especially in newer homes and offices, are of standard dimensions. These window coverings are usually much less expensive than those obtained from custom outlets because of the economies realized from carrying a limited stock of sizes and because there are no sizing operations which must be performed on the products.
In recent years, a third option has been made available to the consumer. This option involves the in-store sizing of window coverings to customer specifications. An example of how in-store sizing is accomplished can be appreciated by reference to commonly-owned U.S. Pat. No. 5,072,494 issued Dec. 17, 1991 to Graves, et al. for "Method And Apparatus For Infinitely Sizing A Mini Blind" and its parent U.S. Pat. No. 4,993,131 issued Feb. 19, 1991 to the same inventors and with the same title. In the device shown in these patents, mini blinds of a specific design are sized to customer specifications on a machine. The mini blind itself includes a head rail, a bottom rail, a plurality of slats, a tilter bar and a rope system for raising and lowering the blind and for locking the blind in a desired open or closed orientation. The mini blind product used with the system illustrated in these two patents includes one ladder (the rope system having slat supports and a hole though each slat to facilitate spacing and the raising and lowering of the blind) fixed in place. The other ladder is not installed at the factory, but is placed over the slats near the installed ladder.
To custom size the mini blind in the store, the blind is cut on one side, with the cutting apparatus passing through the head rail, bottom rail and each of the individual slats. A drill is then used to provide holes in each of the blind slats at a location picked by the operator to match the spacing of the installed ladder, so that the two ladders are spaced the same distance from the ends of the blind. The unsecured ladder is then moved into alignment with the holes and a cord is passed through the slats and secured at the bottom rail. The completed mini blind is then given to the customer. This sizing device, while commercially successful, is relatively expensive and may be somewhat difficult to learn to operate by new employees. Still, the customer is provided with a finished product in a fraction of the time it would normally take to customize a blind and secures his or her purchase without having to leave the store.
Other types of systems have been developed to customize window coverings in retail outlets. For example, Star Shade Cutter Co. has sold equipment for several years for cutting roller shades to desired dimensions. Such devices include a motor driven section which includes a saw for cutting the roller shade at an appropriate location and a support spaced therefrom.
Another system has been developed for sizing pleated shades as described in co-pending, commonly assigned U.S. patent application Ser. No. 07/790,290 filed on Nov. 8, 1991 and entitled "Size-In-Store Pleated Shade And Apparatus and Method For Sizing" in the name of Graves, et al. In this device, a platform is provided which includes a number of spaced apart and parallel channels for holding pleated shades including the head rail, bottom rail and the pleated fabric (cloth, fabric or the like) for allowing it to slide back and forth along the channels to a cutting station. Half scale and full scale rulers are provided so that a pleated shade longer than required by the customer can be cut first on one side and then on the other to provide symmetry with the hardware and the mechanisms for raising and lowering such shade devices. Different cutting devices are used for cutting the pleats than are used to cut the head and bottom rails.
Vertical blinds also represent a significant portion of the window covering market and are popular for such applications as patio door coverings and the like. Devices are known for in-store sizing of such products, where the head rail is cut for a particular application. Typically, the height of vertical blinds does not vary substantially, and it is not always necessary to cut the individual slats. However, once the head rail is cut, the slats could be cut by equipment known to the art to a specific height.
A major problem with in-store sizing of window coverings is employee training. Speed of operation is also of great importance and, in these days of low margin mass merchandising, a primary concern is the amount of space required to store product to be sized and to perform the sizing operations. The more space that is required for different sizing operations, the less space is available for other products or the storage of the window covering product itself. Even with in-store sizing, a variety of stocked sizes of each product type needs to be maintained, as well as an appropriate selection of colors and materials. For example, mini blinds come in a variety of colors, as well as in two major material categories, i.e. aluminum and vinyl. A system which would provide the merchandiser with the opportunity of providing in-store sizing for a variety of window coverings in a compact area would represent a significant advance in this art.